1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a probe or measuring head with illumination of the contact region of the probe or measuring head and of the surrounding test environment. This application is a 371 of PCT/EP06/02641 filed on Mar. 22, 2006.
2. Related Technology
Probes or measuring heads are important in the context of the electrical measurement of analog or digital circuits. For example, EP 0 570 840 B1 describes and presents a probe or measuring head of this kind. In essence, such probes or measuring heads consist of an electrically-conductive probe pin guided axially within a non-conductive housing, which is designed as a handle to allow convenient handling of the probe or measuring head. The end of the electrically-conductive probe pin disposed within the housing is linked via a connecting line to a measurement channel of a measuring instrument or system, while the end of the electrically-conductive pin projecting from the housing provides a contact region, preferably a tip, which is disposed in contact with the electrical contact to be tested during the measurement. Measuring heads of this kind are used as active or passive probes for oscilloscopes and also for spectrum analysers and network analysers.
The probes or measuring heads, which have subsequently appeared on the market, provide a plurality of mechanical, functional features, which allow the establishment of a safe and convenient contact between the probe or measuring head and the electrical contact to be tested even in the case of small-scale circuit structures. However, in view of an increasing miniaturisation of circuit structures, contacting still remains problematic in the face of inaccessible circuit elements or poor lighting conditions, in spite of the technical maturity of such probes or measuring heads.